


Between the Pages of a Book (We'll Find Our Story)

by humanitys_cutest



Category: DBSK | Tohoshinki | TVfXQ | TVXQ, So Nyuh Shi Dae | Girls' Generation
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Books, ChangSeo, F/M, Fluff, Libraries, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-04
Updated: 2014-07-04
Packaged: 2018-02-07 11:30:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1897362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/humanitys_cutest/pseuds/humanitys_cutest
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The first time Changmin walks into the college library in four years, he trips and falls in love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Between the Pages of a Book (We'll Find Our Story)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [hanyurim](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=hanyurim).



> For the lovely and absolutely hilarious hanyurim! I hope you like reading this almost as much as I enjoyed writing it! (Also, thanks a ton to your post about Seohyun's books, it was so helpful :D)
> 
> Unbeta'ed, if anyone finds any mistakes please don't hesitate to tell me ^^

_Day 1_

The first time Changmin walks into the college library in four years, he trips and falls in love.

Of course, he doesn't know that because he is really dense when it comes to feelings.

He had only come because Kyuhyun, his supposed best friend, asked him to check out a book for him, being sick and bedridden. Changmin's pretty sure he purposely got himself sick, because Changmin would rather be seen anywhere but in the library, and Kyuhyun knows that. That's where the nerds go, for fuck's sake!

Whatever the case, there is currently an angel at the front desk, eyebrows furrowed as she reads the book in front of her. Peeking at her through the gaps of the books in one of the shelves, Changmin is sure he's never seen her before.

She has a round, chubby cheeked face, a pouting lower lip, slender hands, and with her wavy dark hair and fair complexion she looks like what Changmin imagines angels would look like.

Changmin can’t remember ever seeing a more pleasing face.

He continues watching her like he’s some kind of criminal, when there is a scuffle of shoes behind him. Startled, he jumps a little and then straightens when he sees that it’s just that annoying freshman who travels in the same circle as Changmin, and follows him around like a lost puppy with adoring looks on his face.

Summoning his most haughty look, he says, sounding bored, "What do you want?"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bother you Changmin sunbae-nim but I saw you and wanted to say hi," Jongin says shyly.

"Well you've said it already, go on now."

"But um, why is sunbae-nim hiding behind the shelves?"

"I'm not _hiding!_ I'm...looking for a book! Yes, that's what I was doing," Changmin says quickly, remembering the reason he was here.

"Oh! Then can I help you?" Jongin asks, eyes shining, probably at the thought of being useful to the college senior he looks up to. Literally and metaphorically.

Changmin is about to refuse him and tell him to go away again when he changes his mind, deciding it’s better if he does as little work as possible. Besides, the boy clearly wants to help, so he isn't taking advantage, right?

"Actually, you could. I need to find this book," Changmin says, handing him a small slip of paper.

Jongin jumps at the opportunity, taking the paper and skimming the barcode number written sloppily on it. "Oh I know where this is! I'll go get it for you," he says cheerfully.

"Okay, take your time," Changmin says, already turning to watch the angel. Jongin turns around and walks deeper into the library, to the place no ever visited except to make out or have sex.

His angel is still reading, but as Changmin watches, a tall boy with blond hair approaches the desk with three books in his arms. _Nerd_ , he thinks jealously when his angel looks up and smiles at the boy. She puts her book to the side, and then says something to him, although Changmin can't quite hear from where he is standing.

She must have asked for a card, because the boy reaches into his pocket and pulls out a library card. She takes it, and when their fingers brush, Changmin growls.

He’s still glowering at the back of the boy's head, muttering threats under his breath, when Jongin comes back and clears his throat pointedly. Changmin looks to see him holding a book in hand, in fact the book Kyuhyun had requested.

"Here you go hyung-nim!" Jongin says, holding the book out.

"Thanks," Changmin mumbles, taking it absently, eyes still on his angel and so completely out of it that he doesn't even notice Jongin called him hyung instead of sunbae. "Jongin-ah."

Jongin perks up at the affectionate name, eyes bright. “Yes, hyung-nim?”

“Do you know who that is?” he asks, pointing to the front desk. The tall boy is still there, talking to his angel.

Jongin pokes his head around the shelf to see. “That’s Kris hyung. He’s a sophomore.”

 _Kris huh?_ Changmin thinks. Not what he was looking for, but it’ll be useful for when Changmin puts his name into his Death Note anyway. “No, I meant the girl.”

“Oh. That’s Seohyun noona. She works here.”

 _Seohyun,_ Changmin thinks as he smiles inwardly. He decides he likes her name. He decides he likes everything about her. He turns back to Jongin. “Of course she works here, why else would she be at the front desk?” he says meanly, hoping Jongin would forget about his inquiry.

Jongin’s face reddens, and then maybe Changmin feels sorry for being mean.

“Thanks squirt. See ya around,” Changmin says as he ruffles Jongin’s hair. Jongin looks pleased, which means Changmin has done his good deed for the day so he turns around and walks toward the front desk.

Kris leaves as soon as he arrives, which is a good thing because Changmin may or may not have broken the guy’s neck for talking to her for so long. What would they have to talk about? Books can’t be _that_ interesting.

He approaches the desk, and Seohyun looks at him and smiles.

Changmin stops breathing for a minute.  

“Hi, how are you?” the angel says, but Changmin is too busy staring at her lips to reply.

The angel clears her throat, and Changmin rips his eyes from her lips to look at her eyes.

She’s looking at him rather unimpressed, but Changmin can’t look away from the clear, bright eyes.

She’s still looking at him questioningly, so Changmin straightens and flashes his most charming smile.

He’s pleased to see her blush slightly. “I’m good, how about you?”

“Good, thank you. Are you checking that out?”

“Yeah,” he says, putting the book on the desk and reaching into his pocket for his wallet, from which he takes out his ID.

He gives it to her when she holds out her hand, making sure to accidently-on-purpose brush their fingers together.

He doesn’t think he was so subtle about it though, because her lips quirk as if she’s having a hard time trying not to laugh.

Changmin smiles, feeling warm.

She gives him his book and ID back, gives him the date it’s due back by, and tells him to have a good day.

“You too,” he says, and walks out of the library, but stops outside to look at her through the glass in the door. She has gone back to reading.

***

Changmin barges into his dorm room. Kyuhyun is sleeping, fully covered under his blanket.

Changmin snatches the covers off him, and Kyuhyun wakes up, looking startled.

“What, what happened?” he says groggily, hands rubbing at his eyes.

“There was an angel at the library!”

Kyuhyun stares at him. “Did you get my book?”

Changmin tosses the book on Kyuhyun's desk, then turns to look at his best friend. “Yes, but that’s not the point. I said I saw an angel.”

“That’s nice,” Kyuhyun says, reaching for his blankets again.

“Kyuhyun!” he snaps, taking the blanket out of his reach.

“What!” Kyuhyun says, but he’s sick so his voice comes out whinier than expected.  

“Listen to me!”

“Okay okay, you saw an angel. What do you want me to do?”

Changmin pauses. “...I don’t know. I just thought you should know.”

Kyuhyun glares at him. “That’s what you woke me up for?”

Changmin shifts. “Um.”

Kyuhyun sighs, then reaches for his blanket again and Changmin doesn’t try to stop him this time. “Well, what’s your angel’s name? Do you even know it?”

Changmin brightens. “It’s Seohyun!” he says proudly.

“Oh Seohyun? I know her. She’s two years below us,” Kyuhyun says around a yawn.

Changmin suddenly crawls on his bed and clutches him by the collar of his shirt. “What?! You know her? Why didn’t you tell me?!”

Kyuhyun looks startled, and then gives him a weird look. “Uh, what? Why would you care?”

Changmin furrows his eyebrows, thinking hard. That is a _good_ question.  

“Dude,” Kyuhyun says, and his voice is full of laughter. “Do you like her?”

Changmin lets go of him and sits back on Kyuhyun’s bed, glaring. “Why are you laughing? Can’t I like her?”

Kyuhyun laughs out loud, then starts coughing. Changmin smirks in satisfaction.

When he's done, he looks at Changmin and says, "Of course you can like her. It's just that she's really sweet and friendly and a good student. You're, like, none of those."

Changmin sighs, then walks across the dorm room to drop face first onto his own bed. "You just don't understand,” he says dramatically.

Kyuhyun rolls his eyes. "Whatever bro. I'm going back to sleep."

And with that, he covers himself in the blanket again and falls asleep immediately, completely missing Changmin's impressive glares.

***

_Day 2_

Changmin watches as Kyuhyun works on his paper. He's been staring for the past 15 minutes, but Kyuhyun was determined to ignore him, it seemed.

Another five minutes, and Kyuhyun finally breaks. “ _What?_ ” he snaps, whipping his head to glare at him.

Changmin turns on his Bambi eyes 100%. “Nothing.”

Kyuhyun lets out a sigh that sounds suspiciously frustrated. “What do you want?”

“I just want to know if you need anything.” Bambi eyes are still going full force.

“Stop that, Yunho hyung is the only one who falls for your Bambi-eyed shit.”

“What? No he’s not! Everyone falls for this!” Changmin says, offended and completely missing the point, but he doesn’t care.

Kyuhyun rubs his eyes.

“So do you need anything? Like, I don’t know, a book maybe? From the library?”

Kyuhyun stops rubbing his eyes and looks at him funny. “You’re not going to leave me alone, are you.” It’s not a question.

“Nope,” Changmin answers cheerfully.

Kyuhyun sighs again and reaches for a paper on his desk. “Alright, here, I need these books for my paper. Go get them.”

Changmin brightens and snatches the paper from him. There’s like 5 million books on the paper.

“I hope Jongin is there again,” Changmin mutters to himself. “I’m not looking for all this shit.”

“I feel bad for the poor girl,” Kyuhyun mutters to himself. “Had the bad luck to attract clingy Shim fucking Changmin.”

Changmin hears that, though. He smacks the back of his head with the paper, but it doesn’t sound very hard, so he picks up a book and hits him with that instead. The sound is much more satisfactory.

“Ow! What the fuck, Changmin!” Kyuhyun says, glaring at him while rubbing the back of his head.

“I’m not clingy! I’m protective!”

“You mean possessive,” Kyuhyun says, and then ducks when Changmin lifts the book again.

“Whatever,” Changmin huffs, and then leaves with the paper and what’s left of his dignity.

***

Seohyun is once again at the desk, to Changmin’s relief. He had eaten himself with worry over whether she would be there today on the walk to the library. She’s reading a book again, but Changmin can’t tell if it’s the same one as the day before.

When he walks in, he doesn’t even have to look for Jongin before the freshmen comes bounding over to him.

“Hi Changmin hyung!” he says brightly.

Changmin notices this time that he has forsaken the ‘nim’ and jumped straight to Changmin hyung.

He pinches Jongin’s ear gently. “It’s hyung-nim, you little brat.”

Jongin scrunches his nose and giggles. "Okay hyung!"

Changmin rolls his eyes but a smile tugs at his lips. Jongin's not so bad, actually.

"Wanna help me out, squirt?" he asks, tugging a lock of his hair.

Jongin immediately lights up. "Yes!"

"I need all these books," Changmin says, waving the paper around.

Jongin takes it from him with a smile. His eyes widen when he takes in the list of eight books though. "Whoa, that's a lot! I didn't know you read so much hyung!"

"Yeah," Changmin says dryly. He looks around, and, to his surprise, Seohyun is looking at them. She smiles a little when Changmin meets her eyes, then looks back down at her book when he grins back, and is Changmin imagining things or are her cheeks a little red?

Well, at least she's noticed him.

Jongin goes off to search for his books, and Changmin begins to peruse one of the shelves containing recreational reading material. He tells himself it's because he's looking for a book, and not because the shelf is closest to the front desk.

After a while, though, he hasn't found anything that catches his interest, and he's becoming quite bored. He glances at Seohyun from time to time, but she's always either reading her book or helping a patron out with a smile on her pretty face. Changmin wants to see that smile directed at him again.

As he watches, another patron comes to the desk. She reaches into her book bag and hands Seohyun a book. Seohyun tilts her head in a small bow with a bright smile and the other girl does the same before leaving. Seohyun flips through the book, and then turns it upside down. A piece of paper falls from the book, which Seohyun skims quickly before throwing in a garbage can under the desk. Maybe it was a piece of scrap paper used as a bookmark, as Changmin himself has done plenty of times. She puts the book on a metal cart with three shelves behind her, probably used for re-shelving purposes.

"Changmin hyung," comes a strained voice near his elbow. He glances down to see that Jongin has come back with an armful of books, looking a little red in the face. The books look quite heavy, and Changmin quickly takes some off his hands.

The books are indeed as hefty as they look, and Changmin feels bad for making him carry them all. "Thanks a lot, Jongin-ah."

Jongin takes in a deep breath, and then smiles, sweet as you please. "No problem, hyung," he says happily.

On a whim, Changmin says, "Go wait outside for me. I'll treat you to lunch if you're not busy."

Changmin watches, amused, as Jongin's face lights up like a Christmas tree. "Really, hyung?"

"Yeah, really."

"Okay!" He piles the rest of the books into Changmin's arms, making him grunt, and then walks out of the library, a grin on his face.

Changmin shakes his head at him and then makes his way to the front desk. He curses Kyuhyun in his head, damning him for needing so many books; he must look like such a nerd.

He puts the books down with a slight thud; Seohyun jumps slightly, looking up. Changmin smiles sheepishly in apology. Seohyun smiles warmly back, and then reaches for the book on the top of the pile. "A bit of light reading?" she says with a quirk of her eyebrows.

Changmin laughs. "No, they're for a friend," he says.

"Is this your friend's idea of light reading then?" She flips to the back of the book, scans the barcode under the scanner, and then puts it to one side before reaching for the next book on Changmin’s stack.

Changmin smiles, watching her elegant hands work. "I guess so, I've always known there was something wrong with him."

Seohyun laughs then, a high sweet sound, her eyes crinkled into half-moon crescents. Changmin feels warmth spread through him just listening to her. “It’s kind of you to get these books for your friend,” she murmurs, eyes fixed on the task in front of her.

 _Yupp, Mr. Nice Guy, that’s me,_ Changmin thinks. He doesn’t say that out loud though, for obvious reasons. Changmin makes a noncommittal sound instead, not knowing how to react to that.

She continues to scan his books, a smile still on her face, eyes looking down. Changmin takes in almond shaped eyes, the full lower lip, the clear, milky skin. She's beautiful, he thinks, and has a sudden urge to tell her exactly what he thinks, but he refrains. She'd probably be freaked out and wouldn't that be a damper.

His eyes fall on her book, open and placed upside down to keep her from losing her place. "Is that any good?" he asks, and when she looks up with a questioning look, he jerks his head towards her book. She looks at it, and then lights up and Changmin absolutely stops breathing.

"Oh yes! It's called _The Gift of Acabar_. It's a wonderful book."

Entranced by the sheer _happiness_ radiating from her, Changmin is anxious to keep her that way. "What's it about?"

"A boy named Tulo and his little sister Jaana. There's a huge storm and he just wants some light and warmth for the two of them to survive it, but then his kite catches a star and the star comes down to earth. It's very inspirational," she says, her eyes shining. "I'm almost done with it. Would you like to read it?"

Changmin thinks maybe his smile is permanently stuck on his face. "Yes, that'd be great," he says, and means it. She seems to value books a lot and get much pleasure from them, and for her to recommend a book to him was like her saying she wanted to share a piece of her happiness with him.

"Come by tomorrow if you have time and I can give it to you then," she says, eyes still crescents.

"Okay," he replies, charmed by her childlike enthusiasm.

She continues to chat with him as she scans the rest of his books, asking him about what he likes to read. Changmin tells her about the sci-fi and fantasy books he's read, and when she finishes with his books he's almost disappointed.

“I’m Changmin, by the way,” he says as he pulls the million books to himself.

Seohyun takes the proffered hand. “I’m Seohyun, it’s nice to meet you.” And her voice is so sweet and sincere Changmin has no doubt that she really means it.

He leaves looking forward to tomorrow. But first, Jongin is waiting outside for him, playing idly on his phone. He looks up and grins when Changmin calls his name, and Changmin drops the books off at his dorm before taking Jongin out for a treat.

As Jongin natters on about this or that while munching on his fries and burger, Changmin nodding once in a while to show he's listening and offering a comment here and there, he thinks it had been a nice day.

***

_Day 3_

As promised, he stops by the library after his last class the next day. Seohyun smiles when she sees him, looking slightly surprised, like maybe she didn’t think he’d really come back. But why on earth he wouldn’t, especially when she smiled at him like _that_ , Changmin has no idea.

“Hello, Changmin…Oppa?” she says, inquiring in the end.

Changmin laughs, because she’s kinda sorta fucking _adorable._ “I’m a senior. You?”

“I’m a sophomore,” she answers cheerfully. Changmin knew that though, courtesy of Kyuhyun.

“I see. I’ve come for my promised book,” Changmin says, smiling easily.

She laughs, and Changmin grins. “And as promised, here it is,” she says with a flourish, pulling the book from under the desk and handing it to him. He takes it carefully, not wanting to ruin something she obviously loves.

He wants to stay and talk to her a little, but there are other people in line behind him, and she smiles at him apologetically.

He flashes her a smile in return. “It’s alright. I’ll read this and return it when I’m done. I’ll even take notes.” She laughs at that. “Are you here every day?” And then he pats himself mentally on the back for that clever thought, because there’s nothing at all suspicious about wanting to know her schedule; he does have to return her book after all, it makes perfect sense to inquire about her working schedule.

“Yupp,” she says cheerfully. “My shift is every day from two to eight, except the weekends, of course.”

“Of course,” he agrees, stowing the information away. “I’ll see you later then.”

“Bye, Changmin oppa. I’ll be expecting those notes,” she calls as he leaves, and she graces him with this little smile, her eyes bright, and Changmin walks away a happy man.

***

_Day 7_

Changmin reads the book between classes, and although it’s nothing he would ever choose to read by himself, he finds the story interesting. He takes notes religiously, which he’ll admit is overdoing it a bit for a book for recreational reading, but he wants Seohyun to know he really did read it.

When he finishes a few days later, he goes back to the library. Seohyun is sitting at the front desk reading, as usual. She looks up when he approaches, her face brightening.

“Hi Oppa,” she says.

“Hey there. I finished the book. I even took notes,” he says, holding his notes up and waving it a little as evidence.

“You really did take notes.” She sounds both surprised and amused at the same time, and Changmin thinks maybe he should be embarrassed for seeming like such a nerd, but Seohyun doesn’t look like she’s mocking him. “That was fast,” she says while laughing. “Did you enjoy it?”

“I did, actually, though I didn’t expect to,” he admits honestly.

He launches into the story, and for the next fifteen minutes he tells her about what he liked and didn't like. Only one patron comes up in that time to check a few books out, and then Seohyun turns right back to him, focusing all her attention on him, and Changmin feels ridiculously flattered.

He asks if she has any more books to recommend to him, and doesn’t even care how desperate he must be to talk to her if he’s willing to read books he usually would have no interest in. But hey, there’s a first time for everything, right?

“Oh, no, I don’t have anything with me right now, all my favorite books are at my dorm,” she says, pouting slightly, and she looks so disappointed and cute Changmin has to tamp down the urge to laugh. He doesn’t know her well enough to know whether she would be offended at his laughing, and would rather not leave a bad impression of himself with her.

“I can come back tomorrow? If you wouldn’t mind bringing one with you?” he ventures, hoping to high heaven she’ll agree.

She brightens immediately. “Of course I wouldn’t mind! Only if it’s not an inconvenience for you, though.”

Changmin smiles, charmed by her thoughtfulness. “It’s not, don’t worry,” he assures her. “I come by the library on my way to my dorm everyday.”

And so she agrees to bring a book for him tomorrow, and he agrees to come, and Changmin leaves feeling like he’s on cloud nine.

***

_Day 10_

Just outside the gates of Changmin’s university, there’s a quaint little street, much like something out of a fairytale. Old fashioned streetlamps cast a soft yellow glow over the cobblestones of the sidewalk at night time. Flower pots full of bright purple and pink and yellow flowers hang from little hooks on both sides of the lamp. Cafes and bookshops and shops selling odd trinkets lined the street, along with stores selling fashionable clothes for both men and women. At night time, it became absolutely gorgeous, soft lights and the sweet scent of flowers in the air, the low murmurs of couples as they walk hand in hand, heads bent towards each other. It was aptly named, many years ago by some sap, Romantic Street.

The street catered mostly to a college student cliente. No matter what time of day you walked into any store, you were bound to see a friend or two, acquaintances and that one kid who was in that one class some years ago.

It is outside a cafe on this street that Changmin is sitting one sunny afternoon, Seohyun’s book on the table in front of him, a piece of paper used as bookmark sticking out about halfway through, and sipping his iced coffee while chatting with his Yunho hyung. He feels content, happy and peaceful to be doing something so simple. Moments like this are rare in college, unfortunately, especially for those in their senior year and second year of law school, respectively.

In a comfortable lapse in their conversation, Changmin fingers the binding of the book absentmindedly, smiling unconsciously when thoughts of Seohyun’s flit through his mind.

Ten days. It’s been exactly ten days since he walked into that library and saw Seohyun sitting at the front desk, and now he can’t get the sophomore out of his brain. All day, at the most random of times, he’ll think of something Seohyun said, or the way she brushes hair out of her eyes impatiently while she chats with Changmin, or how her slender hands move on her desk as she checks out books and leafs through them and organizes them on the metal cart behind her, and warmth would course through him, a silly smile on his face. And then his thoughts will take a turn for the negative, because there’s no way she doesn’t have a boyfriend. Changmin tries not to think too much of that, though.

Kyuhyun’s noticed, of course he has when they live together, and tried asking Changmin about it, poking and prodding, but Changmin would say nothing, eager to keep his memories of her private, all for him. He plans to keep it that way, for as long as he possibly can.

“So, is that one of Seohyun’s books?” Yunho asks casually, and Changmin answers with a vague ‘mmm’, still rubbing his finger gently across the book. And then the question registers.

“Wait, what?” he says, head snapping up. “How do _you_ know Seohyun?”

Yunho laughs. “Kyuhyunnie told me about your little crush. So it’s true?”

“W-what’s true?” Changmin stutters. There’s no reason to feel so panicky, but for some reason, now that Yunho knows about her, he wants Yunho to approve of Seohyun. That old hyung-adoration he’s always had for Yunho, ever since he was eight and Yunho moved in next door, older by two whole years, comes back in full force, something he didn’t think he needed now that he was older, but here it is again, the need for Yunho to approve of his choices and tell him he was doing good. Which is funny, really, because Yunho has never been anything but supportive and encouraging. Whether it was encouraging Changmin to get on a bicycle for the first time when he was nine and convinced he was going to die, or supporting him in his choice of college when his parents didn’t, Yunho has always been there for Changmin. It doesn’t make sense for Changmin to now think that Yunho will suddenly be annoyed by Changmin’s choice of females, especially when he’s the one who’s been urging Changmin to find a girlfriend and leave his flirty ways behind.

“Has our bad boy Changdollie actually found someone he likes?” Yunho teases, and just like that Changmin relaxes and rolls his eyes. This is Yunho, the hyung who would do anything Changmin asked, especially when he turned his Bambi eyes on full blast, and the one who embarrassed him with nicknames like Changdollie. Like seriously, what is he, five?

“I’d appreciate it if you could stop calling me _Changdollie_ , thanks ever so,” Changmin says, scowling. He picks up his iced coffee to take a sip, but most of the ice has melted. He scowls at it and puts it back down.

“Why, are you afraid I’ll embarrass you in front of your wittle crush, Changminnie?” Yunho says, his voice sickeningly sweet and high pitched, mocking him now.

“Hyung,” Changmin whines, because he still turns all of five years old when talking to his hyung. “Stop making fun, this is serious business.”

Yunho quickly straightens his features, nodding seriously. “Yes, I apologize, this is indeed very serious. How can I help? Wait, first you need to tell me about her.”

Changmin huffs and ignores his earlier tone. “Okay, well, she’s really pretty.” He pauses; that’s not entirely accurate. “No, she’s fucking beautiful,” he corrects. Yunho raises an eyebrow. “I’m serious. You’ll be totally jealous when you see her. Anyway, she’s really beautiful and she has really straight dark hair that she curls sometimes and sometimes it gets in her eyes when she’s really excited and moving around a lot and she’ll, like, brush it away like this” - he demonstrates how she brushes her hair away, and ignores Yunho’s quirking lips - “and she’s always touching her hair and smoothing it down” - he demonstrates again and now Yunho really is laughing, the bastard - “and she is so, so smart and she has such chubby cheeks and a lot of aegyo sal and it’s so cute and her lower lip is really pouty and she always dresses so nicely and she always smells really nice and-”

Yunho interrupts with a laugh. “Okay, okay, Changmin I get it, breathe!”

Changmin grins sheepishly. “And I’m afraid she has a boyfriend, because why wouldn’t she, she’s perfect,” he ends gloomily.

Yunho takes pity on him. “Well, I have some good news.”

Changming raises an eyebrow. “Yeah? What’s that?”

“I talked to Sunny when Kyuhyun told me what was up. She told me she knows Seohyun, and that she doesn’t have a boyfriend. So you can stop looking like that now, please.”

Changmin brightens up all over again, the worry of the last few days disappearing like wisps of smoke blown away by wind. “What, really?”

Yunho looks amused by his sudden change of mood. “Yeah, really. But Sunny also told me to tell you that if you, and I quote, ‘plan on playing with my cute baby girl’s feelings ever, I will personally come after and push you down a hundred flights of stairs, take you to the top, and do it again. Several times.’ So, you know, I just wanna know if you’re serious?”

Well. Yunho’s girlfriend may be small, but she was certainly intimidating on the few occasions Changmin had the bad luck of angering her. She barely reached his shoulders, but Changmin still cringed whenever she was mad. Or drunk. Maybe it’s because she’s the university president’s niece, but Changmin takes her warning seriously, even though he knows he doesn't have any plans of playing with Seohyun's feelings. Seohyun is too sweet and pure for anyone to do something like that to her. “Hundred flights of stairs. Got it. Thanks for letting me know,” he says dryly. “And, I, well, I thought she had a boyfriend, so I haven’t really thought of asking her out. But, I think I’d like to,” he says, warming up to the idea, except… “But what if she isn’t interested?” he asks anxiously.

“Well, in that case, you’ll just have to woo her,” Yunho says confidently, with an air of finality, as if it’s the simplest thing in the world.

And of course Yunho would use a word like ‘woo’, being the hopeless romantic he is. “Woo?” Changmin squeaks.

“Yes, you’ll have to make her notice you,” Yunho says, thinking hard, by the looks of it. Changmin lets him think, because if anyone can come up a stupidly sweet way to make girls happy, it’ll be  Yunho. He watches as Yunho’s eyes settle on Changmin’s book, and then as he lights up like a Christmas tree.

“I got it! You can leave little notes in the books you read when you give them back to her! And write really sweet and cute things on them!” he says excitedly, looking for all the world like a giant teddy bear.

Changmin wants to roll his eyes and laugh, but he knows it’s actually kind of a cool idea. God knows he doesn’t have a clue on how to make girls happy, except in bed, but he doesn’t think Seohyun would be down with that, nor does he want this to be the cheap sort of thing that he usually has with other girls. Seohyun is special, and he wants to treat her as such. Plus, he knows Seohyun will see the notes, because he’s seen her flip through books when they’re returned to the front desk to see if there’s any scrap paper left inside.

Which means there’s the possibility of her throwing the note out before reading it, but he doesn’t think she’ll do that. Seohyun’s the type of person who will check carefully to avoid throwing out something important to someone that they may have left in the book accidently, and then she’ll set it aside for safe keeping in case that person comes back. Because she’s that type of sweet.

“Thanks for all your help, hyung,” he announces, putting Seohyun’s book back in his bag and standing up to throw away away his melted iced coffee. “I know what to do now. I’ll see you around.”

“Let me know how it goes!” Yunho calls to him as he walks away, and Changmin waves over his shoulder to let him know he heard him before rushing to his dorm.

He’s got a girl to woo.

***

_Day 12_

When he walks into the library with Seohyun’s second book finished under his arm, he feels nervous like he hasn’t felt around her before. His heart is beating too quickly in chest, butterflies playing in his stomach, palms so sweaty he has to wipe them on his jeans before he feels good enough to approach Seohyun at the front desk. What is _wrong_ with him? He’s never felt so nervous around a girl before; girls were usually fluttery around _him_.

Seohyun greets him brightly, as she always does, and for the first time, Changmin allows himself to hope that she might feel more than friendly interest for him too.

“Hey there,” he says, trying to calm his racing heart. He swallows, throat too dry.

Seohyun’s brows furrow. “Are you feeling okay, Oppa? You look a bit peaky,” she says, watching him carefully. He doesn’t know if he’s imagining it, but she looks like she’s two seconds away from feeling his forehead.

The concern warms him through, and he feels himself relax. “I’m fine, don’t worry. I have your book!” he says cheerfully. “I hope you’ve got one for me.”

He can see her relax too, and she smiles and says “I do, here you go.” She hands him a book, and he reads the title on the cover; _Letters to Sam_. “It’s a really emotional and deep book,” she says softly, watching him. “I hope you like it.”

Changmin looks up and smiles at her. “I’m sure I will.”

He leaves _Nietzsche’s Words_ with her, stomach fluttering, and says goodbye. Outside though, he peeks through the glass in the door, watching as she picks up the book and opens it, flipping through it. She finds the small note Changmin left in there, and watches as she reads it. And then she looks up and Changmin ducks down quickly, praying she didn’t see him. When he chances a peek a few minutes later, her head is bent, and Changmin is sure he sees his note in her hand, but he can’t tell from so far away.

He slinks away, thinking of the quote he wrote and wondering if she liked it.

_Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it. -Confucius_

***

_Day 15_

He comes back to the library three days later, having read the book faster than he thought he would. The book had indeed been every bit as emotional and deep as Seohyun said it was, and so what if he cried at a few parts? It wasn’t like anybody but him and that stupid Bambi plush Yunho had given him ages ago would know.

He had used another piece of paper with a quote on it as his bookmark, and wondered briefly if she’d mention it to him today.

“Oh, you finished?” Seohyun asks, clearly surprised when she sees him back so soon.

“Yeah, it was really good,” Changmin admits, rubbing the back of his head.

She seems genuinely pleased. “I’m glad you liked it.”

They do their usual exchanging of books, Changmin handing his over and receiving another one of Seohyun’s favorite: _Dreaming in the Attic_.  

They talk for a bit about _Letters to Sam_ , and then just after he says goodbye and is about to leave, she says “Changmin oppa?”

He turns back to her. “Yes?”

“Did you leave anything important in your last book?” She’s watching him carefully.

Changmin laughs self-consciously and rubs the back of his head. “Ah, no, usually just a bookmark.”

“Oh, okay,” and just like that the conversation relaxes and he leaves with his usual smile.

_And in her smile I see something more beautiful than the stars. -Beth Revis_

***

_Day 20_

For his fifth book, Seohyun gives him _Freud's Chair_ , and Changmin gives another her another note.

_“...when I met you, you were so beautiful, the air around you vibrated with color...” -John Geddes_

***

_Day 24_

Seohyun gives him _The Rainbow Theory_ as his sixth book.

She hasn’t said anything about any of the notes, but Changmin knows she’s reading them. He seems to see something change about her, about the way she looks at him and talks to him and how she plays with her hair when she’s nervous.

As of now, Changmin has yet to see her outside the library, or even standing; he doesn’t even know how tall she is. He doesn’t know any of her friends, or what she likes to do besides read, and he’s becoming quite anxious that that’s all he's ever going to learn about her. He wants to hurry it up and ask her out, but he doesn’t want to ruin anything by rushing. He wants Seohyun to think about him all day, all the time, just as he does, and until then, he won’t ask her out.

So he waits, patiently, and talks about books with the pretty girl behind the desk. And if he lets his gaze linger on her lips, her throat, her pretty clever hands, and watches her blush when she realizes, well, who could blame him, when she blushes so prettily?

_He stepped down, trying not to look long at her, as if she were the sun, yet he saw her, like the sun, even without looking. -Leo Tolstoy_

***

_Day 27_

The seventh book Seohyun gives him is called _5% Miracle_. She eyes the book in Changmin’s hand, the one he’s about to return, and Changmin briefly wonders if she likes reading the quotes he leaves.

_As if you were on fire from within. The moon lives in the lining of your skin. -Pablo Neruda_

***

_Day 30_

The eighth book Seohyun gives him is her most favorite, she says. She reaches into her handbag and pulls it out, hugging it to herself for a moment before giving it to him shyly.

“Please take care of this book, it’s my favorite,” she says softly, cheeks red, and avoiding his eyes. “I’ve never given it to anyone before.”

Charmed, Changmin takes it from her carefully and looks at the cover: _Study Like a Fool, Dream Like a Genius_ , by Ban Ki Moon.

The title makes him chuckle, and he looks up to tell her it’s funny, but she’s looking steadfastly down, hands restlessly touching one thing or another on the desk.

For a moment he’s confused, perplexed about why she was so nervous, but only for a moment, because then it hits him. She’s giving him her favorite book, the most precious to her of all, by her role model. And, not only that, but he was the first person she had ever given it to. The weight of such a thought floors him, but he’s so pleased to be considered for it.

“I’ll take care of it. Thank you for letting me borrow it,” he says gently. She smiles shyly, her eyes bright, and Changmin turns around to leave.

_What you do, the way you think, makes you beautiful. -Scott Westerfeld_

_Among other things._

It’s the first time Changmin leaves something personal on the notes. He wonders, as he finds himself wondering a lot these days, what Seohyun will think.

***

_Day 32_

He reads this book quickly, precious as it is to Seohyun, and finds himself in even more awe of this girl he found quite by accident. By the time he’s done and staring at the book, Changmin makes up his mind.

He comes to the library a little later than usual. Seohyun is at the desk, beautiful as always. She smiles when she sees him, something soft and warm in her eyes, and Changmin smiles back.

“So. How did you like it?” The question is casual, but he can hear the anxiety beneath, and for a moment Changmin wonders why she would be anxious. It occurs to him, then, that this is how he sometimes sounds when mentioning to Yunho something he did, and realizes Seohyun is looking for his opinion. Because, for some reason, it’s important to her, and Changmin feels his heart lurch.

“I loved it. Couldn’t put it down. Which is why I finished so quickly,” he says, laughing. Seohyun seems relieved and grins back brilliantly, and his heart speeds up at the sight of her smile.

He thinks about what’s in the book, and prays to God it’ll turn out okay.

He slides the book over the desk, tells her he’s busy today and has to go, and takes a few steps back. She seems a little disappointed, but she says good bye anyway.

Changmin walks out the library and then peeks through the glass to watch her open the book, but only for a moment. Just as he sees her open the book to the little note, he turns tail and runs away, coward that he is.

_Can I have your number please? :)_

***

_Day 35_

Changmin’s nervous as hell. There’s some sort of circus party going on in his stomach, his hands keep sweating and he has to wipe them on his jeans over and over again, and something seems to be constricting his breathing.

He’s managed to avoid the library for the last few days, telling himself it was to give Seohyun time to think about whether or not she wanted to go out with him, but really it was because he was scared of being rejected. He’s never had to deal with these kind of feelings before, and if he was honest it was rather giving him a headache, and he sort of wanted to know right away so he could stop worrying so much. Better to peel off a bandaid quickly, after all. Three days of staying away and not knowing what would happen was absolute torture. Yunho and Kyuhyun noticed, of course, and asked what was wrong, but Changmin refused to tell them, thinking that if he said anything, he might jinx it. So his friends were left to poke and prod, but to no avail.

So three days later, he tells himself to be a man and grow a pair, and goes to the library. Seohyun has her back to the door, arranging some books on the metal cart behind her. Taking a deep breath, he walks to the front desk and clears his throat.

Seohyun glances behind her shoulder from her task, and then smiles brilliantly when she sees Changmin. She turns around and says hello, and Changmin manages to greet her back without his voice cracking or anything else embarrassing.

“You forgot to take a book last time,” were the first words out of her mouth, and Changmin feels something inside him twist, his heart dropping. Was she just going to ignore what he wrote? Was this her way of letting Changmin down gently, her way of saying no? Changmin swallows, an ache growing like vines and wrapping around his chest, making it hard to breathe.

“Here, I’ve had it for you for a few days, in case you came back,” she continues, watching him while she slides a book across the smooth countertop.

Changmin clears his throat, tells himself to get a grip, it’s not her fault if she’s not interested, and smiles. “Yeah, I was little, um, preoccupied. Thanks, though.”

“No problem,” she says, still smiling so warmly, and Changmin can’t believe he misunderstood that smile, thought it was something more than it was. Seohyun is a lovely girl, friendly and good-natured; of course she would smile like that to everyone, because that’s the type of person she is.

Doesn’t mean he has to stick around and embarrass himself even more. “I’m sorry, I have a ton of assignments to work on, I’ll see you in a few days?”

“Sure,” she replies, and she seems sort of disappointed, but that’s probably just Changmin’s imagination again. She did just reject him, didn’t she?

He turns around and leaves, and as soon as he’s out of sight of the library he sags against a wall, rubbing a hand over his face and through his hair. _Fuck,_ is the only thing he can think. He didn't expect the rejection to hurt so much. 

He heads back to his dorm in a daze, that ache building in his chest, and he’s so unaware of his surroundings he doesn’t even notice he’s in his dorm until his knees hit his bed. He looks around, surprised; Kyuhyun isn’t here, probably out with some friends. Changmin drops to his bed, and stares at the ceiling. How could he have been so wrong? Miscalculated so badly?

He lets himself drown in his pathetic thoughts, miserable and feeling sorry for himself, and after what feels like hours he picks up Seohyun’s book, a pang going through his chest just looking at it. He opens it up uninterestedly, when something falls from it.

Surprised, Changmin picks it up off his stomach to find a...note.

_You only had to ask :)_

And below it, Seohyun’s phone number.

He sits up quickly, bad mood forgotten as his heart leaps through his throat. He stares at the note, and what it means. Seohyun gave him her number. She wasn’t rejecting him. She...was interested too.

Suddenly feeling like he could fly, he scrambles for his phone, and enters her number into his contacts list. His fingers are shaking so bad he has to try a few times. Then, taking a fortifying breath, he types out a message.  
  
 _Sent to: Seohyun_  
 _Hey, it’s Changmin oppa. Why didn’t you just give it to me while I was there?_

He contemplates adding a sad face to show her just how upset he was, but then decided against it. He presses send, and then waits for her to text back, heart thudding painfully.

He didn’t have to wait long; less than a minute later, she texted back.

 _Received from: Seohyun_   
_But I did give it to you while you were there :D besides, your kicked puppy face is sort of adorable kekeke_

Changmin laughs out loud, too happy to feel offended that she thought he had looked like a kicked puppy. He feels all the tension fly out of him, relaxing his shoulders and easing the constriction in his chest.

 _Sent to: Seohyun_   
_That’s not what i meant and u know it. And i didnt look like a kicked puppy!!_

 _Received from: Seohyun_   
_Well, you asked me in a note, so I thought I should respond with a note. And you did :P_

Changmin lets it go, and then asks her for a date. She agrees to the following Friday night, two days away, and Changmin can hardly wait.

He texts Yunho later to tell him what happened, and his hyung texts back quickly, telling him he’s happy for Changmin and demanding that Changmin admit his plan was brilliant. Changmin does, but only because it really was.

He goes to bed smiling.

***

_Day 37_

Changmin waits nervously outside the cafe where he planned to meet Seohyun, fidgeting in place and tugging at his sleeves. He’s wearing a baby blue button up and jeans; simple, and yet they looked good on him, he knows they did. After waiting for five minutes, in which he had to squash the urge to run his hands through his hair and thereby mess up all the work he had put into it this morning, Seohyun appears from around the corner, brown handbag on her arm. She’s wearing a sleeveless summer dress, the top half made of white lace with a turquoise colored bow on one of the shoulders, and the skirt half of it the same turquoise color but with white polka dots. Her waist is cinched with a light brown belt, hair wavy and hanging around a lightly made up face.

She looks absolutely gorgeous.

She comes up to Changmin and smiles shyly, and Changmin realizes she’s actually quite tall for a girl, reaching a little above his shoulders, which is something, given that he's over six feet. He’s so busy staring at her that he can’t speak for a few seconds. At least until she clears her throat pointedly, a light blush dusted across chubby cheeks.

“Oh, sorry,” Changmin says sheepishly, and then holds the door open for her.

She smiles in thanks and then walks in, pausing slightly to look for a table before heading to one near the window. He follows her with a small smile on his face and settles across from her, looking around. There are other couples around them, mostly college students, and Changmin feels a thrill shoot through him, because that’s what he and Seohyun are now, right? A couple? He shouldn’t be feeling so giddy about a first date, but he’s never taken a girl seriously before, and this time he’s determined to do it right.

“Is this place okay?” Seohyun asks, and he turns to look back at her. She looks as cute as always, and Changmin’s having a hard time trying to stop smiling.

“Yeah, it’s fine,” he answers. He had wanted to go someplace else, somewhere off campus, maybe a movie and a dinner because that’s how first dates go, right? But Seohyun had requested that they go to a cafe somewhere, because she wanted to get to know him better, if that was okay. Her shy and honest words had made him feel warm inside, so taken by this girl who was too thoughtful to be real, and he had readily agreed.

He’s still smiling at her now, and she brushes a hand over her hair, looking a little self conscious. “Is, um, is my hair messed up?”

“No, just. You look wonderful,” he tells her honestly, and his honesty’s worth it when she blushes bright red.

She laughs a little, and settles her hands in her lap. "Thank you. You look nice, too.”

And just like that, they fall into a conversation while they eat, about everything and anything. Changmin learns that she’s a political science major, an only child, speaks four languages fluently (Korean, Japanese, Chinese, and English), has big plans to change the world, plays the piano and guitar (just like him!), and loves Keroro and sweet potatoes more than boys.

The last one makes him laugh, and he asks her if she likes sweet potatoes than him. She laughs, too, and says, “Well, right now, yes.”

“I’ll change that, don’t worry,” he says confidently and watches her eyes crinkle in laughter again.

The minutes go by, and before he knows it, they’ve been at the cafe for two whole hours and the staff is shooting them pointed looks.

He walks her back to her dorm and says good night, and she doesn’t make any attempt to come too close so Changmin leaves it at that.

Even if he didn’t get a kiss, it was still a great night. He goes back to his own dorm smiling, hands in his pockets.

***

_Day 64_

On their fifth date, they go to the cafe near their college again. The sun is setting, casting an orange-gold glow over everything, creating shadows that were much longer than their owners. Crickets chirped here and there, among the low chatter of students out to enjoy the weather and the fragrant scents of the potted flowers.

When on their first date Changmin learned Seohyun’s likes and dislikes, and she learned his, over their past three dates he learned more about her personality. He found that she was steadfast in her thinking, wouldn’t be swayed from her philosophies, was very strong minded, and believed that unhealthy diets accumulated and eventually you’ll die. To which Changmin responded by ordering another hamburger. She had scowled at that, and then leaned in to whisper, “Oppa. If you eat that hamburger, you’ll die.”

Changmin leaned toward her and whispered back, “Seohyunnie. I’m going to die anyway, I might as well enjoy a cheeseburger before I keel over.”

To his glee, she hadn’t had a response for that, and then just leaned back in her chair and pouted. He took an exceptionally big bite and made lewd moaning sounds to let her know exactly what she was missing out on, and she just pouted harder while turning a pretty shade of red.

And then, to his complete and utter surprise and delight, he discovered she was full of sass, and could snark with Changmin like the best of them. Changmin could talk to her like he had never been able to with any girl. She matched him wit for wit and rarely ever let a chance to tease him pass by her, which Changmin found sort of refreshing, since girls could never seem to stop gaping at him when he was with them, never mind actually making fun of him playfully. Seohyun, though, was completely different, and Changmin couldn’t help but think she was just what he wanted. What he _needed._

He still hadn’t tried to kiss her on the lips, although he had kissed her cheek. For some reason, instincts told him it just wasn’t the right time. Changmin didn’t want to scare her off, so he repressed his desire to feel those pouty lips beneath his, and waited for the right time. When he walked her to her dorm after their second date, he had kissed her cheek, and when she had responded by smiling shyly and blushing slightly and kissing his, he had done it on their following dates too. Kyuhyun and Yunho had teased him mercilessly for acting like a virgin instead of the womanizer he was otherwise known as, but he had ignored them, because his relationship with Seohyun was too important to him to fuck up.

Now, in a moment of comfortable silence, Changmin is looking at Seohyun, as per usual, and Seohyun is looking out the window with a small furrow between her brows, which is a bit unusual, actually.

Changmin glances outside, wanting to know what she’s looking at, but there’s nothing striking out there, just the normal college couples walking hand in hand. He looks back at her. “Something wrong?”

Her eyes flick to his and she smiles a bit sheepishly. “Oh, um, no, not really.”

He raises an eyebrow, sipping his drink and waiting patiently.

She drops her gaze and twirls her straw through her own drink. “I was just wondering if we could…” she trails off, and Changmin sees that her cheeks are reddening slightly.

Curious, he leans forward. “Yes? What is it?”

She doesn’t say anything for a second, so Changmin says, “Just tell me. I’ll do it for you if I can.”

She smiles at that, hesitates a moment longer, and then blurts out, “I wanted to walk down this street with you.”

There’s a small beat of silence, in which Changmin thinks he’s stopped breathing. Seohyun wants to walk down the street known as Romantic Street with him. As a couple. Changmin is sure his heart will burst from how much it's swelling from happiness. He smiles, instead, and hopes he doesn't look like too much of a maniac. “Of course. Come on, let’s go.”

She beams back, eyes crinkled into those half-moon crescents Changmin loves, and then picks her handbag up. “Okay.”

He pays for their drinks and then takes her hand, a liberty he found the courage to take on their third date, and for which he had been further encouraged when she had squeezed his hand back before entwining their fingers together. Changmin hadn’t known simple hand holding could make him feel so good.

He holds the door open for her and she exits but doesn’t let go of his hand. Once outside, she takes in a deep breath of fresh air and then smiles up at him, and Changmin can’t do anything but smile back, feeling so content and happy it leaves him a little speechless.

He tugs her hand, and without a word, she follows him, letting him lead her to the sidewalk. He laces their fingers together and she brings up her other hand and rests it on his bicep, leaning on him. Changmin feels the warmth of her body through her clothes, and pulls her even closer.

And tucked close together like that, they make their way down the sidewalk, not talking much, enjoying each other’s presence. A couple heads turn their way, eyes flickering from Changmin to Seohyun, small smiles lighting upon other people’s faces as they look at them, and Changmin feels suddenly proud to have such a beautiful girl on his arm. He doesn’t know what they look like to other people, but he’s pretty sure they make a striking couple, and the knowledge makes him feel like he’s glowing.

Even though Changmin tries to walk as slowly as humanly possible without making it seem like so, they reach the end of street before he's ready to. He stops her from turning the corner though, lightly pulling her under one of the street lamps. Seohyun looks at him in confusion, but lets him lead her. He just gazes back, heart hammering beneath his chest.

Something tells him this is it.

Locking his eyes on hers, he pulls her again gently, until she's flush against his body, the top of her head reaching his chin. Her arms reach around him to catch her balance, fingers gripping his shirt. She lets out an _oof_ of surprise, and then lifts her head, looking at him quizzically.

And then Changmin can't breath.

Seohyun's eyes are so clear, so bright, the lamplight reflected in them as she looks up at him, and then something flashes through her eyes and Changmin is gone.

He lowers his head, and he brushes his lips against hers.

For a moment Seohyun doesn't respond, eyes wide and frozen, but Changmin doesn't move away, and does it again. He leaves the barest of pressure against her lips, tilts his head slightly to the side and does it again, eyes heavy lidded as he looks down at her, and Seohyun finally responds. Cautiously, she tilts her head up to make it easier for him and moves her lips against his, and when Changmin groans softly, heart pounding, her eyes flutter closed.

He wraps his arms tightly around her waist and hers come up around his neck, and Changmin loses himself in her.

Her lips are soft and smooth and taste faintly of vanilla, lower lip so sweet and pouty. He nibbles on it, desperate to taste all of her, and when she gasps he licks it with tiny flicks of his tongue. She moans into his mouth then, her fingers suddenly in his hair and running through it, massaging his scalp, and Changmin shivers.

Seohyun becomes a bit bold then, and hesitantly runs her tongue along his bottom lip. Pleased by her reaction, Changmin lets her do whatever she wants. He turns his attention instead to her hair, unwrapping an arm from around her waist to run it through the long, silky dark strands, something he's wanted to do since forever.

She bites lightly at his lips and then kisses it, capturing it between her lips and sucking lightly. The sensations make him heady, lips tingling from her warmth, and he distantly hears himself moan.

He doesn't know how long they stand under the streetlamp, wrapped around each other, just kissing and breathing the other's air. Eventually Seohyun pulls away, and Changmin is not the least bit embarrassed when his lips try to follow, but Seohyun chuckles breathlessly. "There's still people around," she murmurs softly, eyes on his.

Her lips are red and swollen with kisses - _his_ kisses - eyes dazed and face flushed and panting. Changmin is awed for a moment; _he_ did this to her, made prim and proper and entirely-in-control-of-herself Seohyun lose herself in him.

He can't help it; he kisses her again, and then glances around. There are indeed people around, some stealing surreptitious looks, but mostly no one seems to be paying attention.

"Walk me back now?" she says, and her voice sounds completely breathless.

Changmin does, Seohyun's hand in his, and smiling stupidly at her every time their eyes meet each other. When they get to the front of her dorm, he pulls her close and kisses her again, and would have happily done that for the rest of the night, but eventually she pulls away breathlessly and says she has to go. Changmin is half hoping she'll invite him up, but is realistic enough to know she wouldn't, and besides, he sort of doesn't want to. He wants to do this right, wants to make this girl feel special because she is. He doesn't want this to end.

Seohyun kisses and hugs him one last time, and then walks into her building, turning around to wave at him through the glass, smiling. Changmin waves and smiles back, and then waits for her to disappear into the elevator before he turns and leaves, hands in his pocket and whistling.

The wait had been entirely worth it.

***

_Day 402_

Changmin wakes up to the sound of birds chirping, sunshine flitting through the lacy curtains and right in his fucking face.

Changmin hates Seohyun's stupid curtains.

He rolls over with a groan, face in his pillow and determined to go back to sleep, but he feels a slim, warm hand on his back shaking him and he knows all hope is lost.

"Changmin oppa."

Changmin grunts in reply.

"Wake up now."

"I'm awake. Like anyone can sleep when your useless curtains let in all the light. Which, I may remind you, are the exact opposite of what curtains are supposed to do." Except his head was still in his pillow so everything comes out all muffled. He isn’t even sure if his girlfriend understood any of it.

“Are you quite done whining about my curtains?”

Apparently she didn’t need to understand to know he was complaining. “Yes,” Changmin grumbles.

“Then I’d like to remind you that _I_ won rock paper scissors that time and we had agreed that whoever won got to choose the curtains. Now stop complaining, today is a very important day,” Seohyun said primly. Which is unfair, really, since Changmin is sure she only woke up moments before he himself did, and so should be as disoriented as he is.

And yeah, so maybe he _had_ been the one to suggest playing rock paper scissors to decide who would get to choose the curtains for their new apartment a month ago, but that had only been because he had been fully convinced he'd win. How was he supposed to know she would throw rock every freaking time?

Sighing dramatically so she hears, he turns his head towards her and opens his eyes. Or tries to, anyway. The sunlight is still attempting to blind him, so he just squints against it and curses.

He hears Seohyun sigh, and then the bed shifts as she moves into the path of the sun rays, blocking it from touching Changmin’s eyes. Her shadow falls over him, and it’s finally safe to open his eyes.

Seohyun is looking down at him, a small, affectionate smile on her face. Her eyes are as bright and clear as always, warm as they look at Changmin. Her dark tresses slip over bare shoulders, some of it tickling Changmin’s face. The sun is like a halo around her face, and as he looks at her, he thinks his Seohyun looks like an actual angel. He reaches a hand out to run it through her hair, loving the way it slips through his fingers like the most delicate and expensive silk. He’s obsessed with them, to say the least.

Still lying on his stomach, he wraps an arm around her waist and tugs her down again onto her side, the sun in his eyes be damned, and pulls her close, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Why is today important,” he murmurs, eyes falling closed again in the face of the sun’s relentless attack. His hand starts to caress her side, running from her hips to just below her breasts and then down again. Seohyun is warm and so soft as he strokes the hills and valleys of her body. He feels her shiver when his hand runs over the sensitive spot just above her hip, and smiles slightly.

He opens his eyes again to see her pouting at him. “What do you mean, why is today important??”

Changmin does his best to look puzzled, trying to hide the amusement in his eyes, but he doesn’t stop stroking her. “I mean, why is today important? Is there somewhere we have to be? Or is it someone’s birthday? I know it’s not yours.”

She looks positively dismayed by the time he stops talking. “Oppa, don’t tease me,” she says, mouth turned down.

And call Changmin a wimp, but he’s never been able to stand her upset face, so he stops teasing her. “Sorry, I’m just kidding, I know today’s our anniversary,” he says, smiling.

Her face practically glows at that. “You remembered.”

“Of course I did,” he replies, kissing her nose. “Today’s an important day.”

Seohyun smiles sweetly, looking at him adoringly, and Changmin can’t resist kissing her lips then.

But she pulls away, making a face. “Ugh, Oppa, your breath stinks.”

Changmin laughs, and then rolls over so he’s on top of her, supporting his weight on his elbows while his fingers snake into her hair. “That’s too bad. Guess I’ll just have to kiss you here,” he says, grinning, and then lowers his head to kiss her delicious collar bone. Her head tilts back, and he hears her breath hitch. He kisses and licks a spot, and then latches on, sucking and teasing the skin with gentle bites. Seohyun moans above him, one hand sliding into his hair while the other grips his back. When he’s certain he’s left a love bite, he lifts his head and inspects his work. There’s a pleasing color developing on her collarbone, and, satisfied, he grins up at her.

Seohyun’s eyes are half-lidded as she looks at him. “Stop distracting me,” she says breathlessly.

“I’m not,” he murmurs, kissing her neck. He moves his mouth to where her pulse is beating fast against her skin, and kisses that too.

“Oppa, stop,” she says, and it’s half moan, half warning. Grinning, Changmin kisses her shoulder one last time, and then looks up. “I have something for you.”

He moves off of her, but keeps an arm and leg slung over her. “A present? I love presents.”

“I know you do,” she says, looking amused. She tries to untangle herself from him, but when he does nothing but watch her struggle (and make himself as heavy as possible to make it difficult for her to shove him off), she gives up and stretches as far as she can, to the nightstand on her side of the bed. He takes in the pale, milky skin of her back hungrily, itching to reach across and mark her all over.

So maybe Kyuhyun was right, and he’s the tiniest bit possessive. Just a bit, though.

She finally turns back to him, and in her hand is a book. She holds it out to him shyly. “I didn’t think I was going to give this to you when we were naked in bed, but some things can’t be helped, I guess.”

Changmin laughs. “I guess so.”

He sits up in bed, leaning against the headboard, and takes the book from her before pulling her to him to tuck her in his arms, an arm wrapped around her waist. He pulls the covers up to both their waists, and then looks at the book more closely while his hand stroke her side slowly, and he realizes it isn’t a real book.

It’s handmade.

On the cover is written _The Story of Changmin and Seohyun_ , and below that, is a hand drawn picture of a cartoon boy and girl. The boy has big ears and eyes, and his arm is slung around the girl’s shoulder. The girl is drawn with long black hair, and she’s looking at the boy, hearts in her eyes.

Changmin stares at the drawing and feels a lump forming in his throat.

“Oppa?” a voice says softly.

Changmin clears his throat and looks at her. “Did you make this?”

Seohyun smiles shyly. “Yeah. Do you like it?”

He smiles, heart fit to burst, and kisses her lightly. “Yeah.”

He opens to the first page, and there’s a drawing of what is obviously a library, shelves lining the walls and tables placed here and there. A boy is hiding behind a tall bookshelf, face turned towards a girl sitting at the circulation desk. Changmin sputters.

“I wasn’t hiding!” he claims indignantly.

“You were too. I saw you,” Seohyun teases, giggling.

Grumbling and unable to deny it, he reads the small blurb under the picture. _One day, while working her normal shift at the library, Seohyun sees a boy with big ears hiding behind bookshelves._

“I’m sure my ears aren’t that big,” he says, slightly put out.

Seohyun laughs. “They’re adorable,” she says, and leans up to bite gently at him.

“Well in that case, please continue,” he says, voice rough and shuddering slightly.

She laughs again and kisses his ear. “Keep reading.”

He turns his attention back to the book, and as he keeps flipping pages he grins harder and harder. Seohyun has written pages and pages of the time since they first met. There are pictures she drew herself, and others she pasted from the pictures they took together. There’s their first date, and them holding hands, and walking down Romantic Street, and kissing, and then there are pictures of them grinning at the camera, with their friends and alone. There are memorable moments, and those that were normal and yet so endearing.

And then the notes. Every single one of the notes Changmin had left Seohyun is pasted in the book, exactly as he had given them to her.

She had kept every single one.

It’s adorable, and so completely Seohyun.

The last page has no pictures, but instead of the customary _the end_ , there’s just Seohyun’s handwriting.

_I love you._

Changmin stares at those three words, and he keeps staring until Seohyun clears her throat and nudges him with her pointy elbow.

Changmin jumps slightly and looks at her. She meets his gaze, and then looks down at her hands, twisting in her lap. “You don’t have to say it back. I just wanted to, um, let you know.”

Changmin smiles and kisses her softly, a kiss she eagerly returns, and instead of answering he reaches across to his own nightstand and pulls out a book, taking a deep breath before turning around and handing it to her, heart pounding.

“A book?” she says, and then laughs softly, looking down at it. “We’re such nerds.”

“No, baby, _you’re_ such a nerd. I’m just attached to one,” he says, laughing quietly and kissing her temple. She doesn’t say anything about him not answering her confession, and he has no idea what she’s thinking. He can’t read her expression either, because she’s looking down.

“ _Pride and Prejudice_?” she says, reading the cover of the book, and then looks up at him, an eyebrow raised.

“Yes, yes, I know you’ve already read this,” he says, tugging a lock of her hair. “Just open it.”

She looks back down and opens the book, and a piece of paper falls out. She picks it up, and then reads. Changmin can feel his heart constricting, he's so nervous.

_I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where._

_I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;_

_so I love you because I know no other way than this:_

_where I does not exist, nor you,_

_so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,_

_so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep._

_\- Pablo Neruda_

"Turn the page," he says, nudging her.

She does, slowly, and then pauses. In the regular pages of a book, Changmin had cut a square straight through it, so it contained a little hole big enough for a small, velvet box.

He heard Seohyun suck in a breath, and then watched as she gently lifted the box and opened it. Inside are two rings, one a plain silver band, the other inlaid with three small diamonds.

For a moment she’s silent, and Changmin finds that he's holding his breath.

"They're promise rings," he says, voice hushed and slightly terrified of her reaction, hoping and praying he hadn't overstepped.

And then finally, finally, she looks up at him, and her eyes are watery. "You're such a sap," she says, voice a little wobbly, and Changmin lets out his caught breath in a laugh, something in his chest releasing the tight grip it had around his heart.

He pulls her onto his lap, and she straddles him, wrapping her arms arounds his neck. Her breasts are pushed against his chest, and Changmin squeezes her even closer before he kisses her hard, not caring that he hasn't brushed his teeth. He's just content that he's here with her, basking in her presence and her kisses and her warmth.

"I love you too," he whispers against her lips.

She kisses him harder.

 ~The End~

**Author's Note:**

> That bit about Seohyun and Changmin walking down Romantic street is obviously taken from [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlJI4wc3NPU).
> 
> Inspired by [this](http://humanitys-cutest.tumblr.com/post/64819766112/imagineyourotp-imagine-person-a-of-your-otp.%20).
> 
> Comments are love ^^


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